The Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") amended the "Guidelines to Application of the Antimonopoly Act Concerning Review of Business Combination" ("Guidelines") and the "Policies Concerning Procedures of Review of Business...more
2/5/2020
/ Amended Rules ,
Cash Value ,
Conglomerates ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Platforms ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
New Guidance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Research and Development ,
Vertical Mergers
The 2019 Amendments to the Anti-Monopoly Act ("Amendments") including revisions to surcharge system (i.e., administrative fine system) will be fully in force within 2020. Accordingly, so-called attorney-client privilege will...more
1/24/2020
/ Abuse of Superior Bargaining Position (ASBP) ,
Administrative Hearings ,
Amended Rules ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Bid Rigging ,
Cartels ,
Data Collection ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Platforms ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Restraint of Trade ,
Secretary Generals ,
Transparency
The Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") issued "Guidelines Concerning Abuse of Superior Bargaining Position in Transactions between Digital Platform Operators and Consumers that Provide Personal Information, etc."...more
The Japan Cabinet proposed the "Approaches to a bill on improving transparency of transactions of digital platform operators (provisional name)" on December 19, 2019 ("Proposal") and is seeking comments from the public until...more
On October 25, 2019, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (“JFTC”) announced that it approved a commitment plan proposed by Rakuten, Inc. (“Rakuten”). As a result, the JFTC closed its investigation without finding violation or...more
Big Tech as well as other global companies will likely have to modify their business models -
Japan’s growing e-Commerce market continues to benefit both businesses, which are able to reach more customers and reduce...more
9/16/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Acquisitions ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
B2C ,
Competition ,
Digital Platforms ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Public Comment
On August 29, 2019, the Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") published a draft of new "Guidelines Concerning Abuse of a Superior Bargaining Position in Transactions between Digital Platform Operators and Consumers that...more
9/3/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Antitrust Violations ,
B2C ,
Bargaining Power ,
Data Collection ,
Digital Platforms ,
Failure to Notify ,
Guidance Update ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Personal Information ,
Public Comment ,
Targeted Digital Advertising
During FY 2018, the Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") received 321 notifications, which is the largest in the past five years and a 4.9 percent increase from FY 2017. It provided clearance for 315 cases at Phase I review....more
The Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") periodically conducts market research to review and investigate business activities that may violate abuse of superior bargaining position ("ASBP") regulations. For the first time in...more
8/26/2019
/ Anti-Monopoly ,
Coercion ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
IP License ,
Japan ,
Japan Patent Office ,
Manufacturers ,
METI ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Patents ,
Research and Development ,
Trade Secrets
On July 10, 2019, the Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC")'s research center, Competition Policy Research Center ("CPRC") published a report ("Report") that organizes and analyzes antitrust law issues with respect to business...more
The bill to amend the Anti-Monopoly Act (the "AMA"), that includes the enhancement of a surcharge (i.e., administrative fine), has passed on June 19, 2019.1 It will be effective no later than from December 25, 2020. The...more
7/11/2019
/ Anti-Monopoly ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Cartels ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Enhanced Penalties ,
Fines ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Monopolization ,
New Rules ,
Parent Corporation ,
Retailers ,
Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) ,
Surcharges ,
Unfair Competition ,
Wholesale
The bill to amend the Anti-Monopoly Act (the "AMA"), that includes reform of leniency system, has passed on June 19, 2019. New leniency system will be effective no later than from December 25, 2020....more
On May 21, 2019, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry ("METI"), Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") and Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications ("MIC") jointly published reports that provide options for...more
6/10/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Data-Sharing ,
Digital Platforms ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Draft Guidance ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
METI ,
Portability ,
Public Comment ,
Transparency ,
Websites
The Cabinet of Japan submitted a bill (the "Bill") to amend the Anti-Monopoly Act (the "AMA") to the Diet on March 12, 2019. The Bill includes amendments to (i) the method for surcharge calculations, (ii) the leniency system...more
4/22/2019
/ Anti-Monopoly ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Legal Professional Privilege ,
Leniency Programs ,
Obstruction of Justice ,
Proposed Amendments
The Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") published the Report on the Actual Status of Consumer e-Commerce Transactions (the "Report") on January 29, 2019. The rapid expansion of consumer e-commerce in Japan in recent years...more
3/8/2019
/ Advertising ,
Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Competition Authorities ,
E-Commerce ,
Internet Retailers ,
Japan ,
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ,
Manufacturers ,
Retail Market ,
Retailers
The Japan Fair Trade Commission's (the "JFTC") major priorities in 2019 are, among others, amendments to the Antimonopoly Act (the "AMA"), research in areas of the digital economy and the labor market, and, of course,...more